Your Love is like a Laser
by jesuislacamera
Summary: AU. Ryan/Taylor. Your love is like a laser burning right into my life. You knowing my weaknesses you cut me like a knife.
1. Your Love is like a Laser

**Your Love is like a Laser**

_No copyright infringement intended. The OC and all characters associated with the show do not belong to me. The lyrics to Laser Love by After the Fire also do not belong to me._

Authors note: _Ryan + Taylor fanfiction for sure. I'm a massive RT shipper. I'm not sure how long this story will be but as I've almost completed the second part of the story it should be at least three parts long. I hope you enjoy it._

Please read and review

**Your Love is like a Laser**

The dark night sky lay above her, the stars seeming to mock her with their sparkle and shine. The dullness and the routine of her life always appeared more monotonous than usual when she stargazed, a feeling she hated to acknowledge. Yet something kept her gaze fixated above her, the feeling it gave her. _The feeling that she could achieve the impossible. _The same feeling she had last felt on her graduation day and prior to all the befores.

Before her imagined fairytale existence in Paris had collapsed in front of her eyes, before she had almost walked down the aisle with a French man who had lent her a metro ticket and before sleep had been a scarcity.

The passenger door to her red convertible opened at that second and the smell of coffee filled her lungs. She didn't turn towards the sound but instead listened to the other occupant of her thunderbird recline their seat as far as it would go.

She knew who it was. She seemed to have some sort of personal radar reserved just for him. He was the only other person apart from herself that knew she was back in Newport. He was the only person she hadn't been afraid to tell of her failure.

Sucking in a deep breath of air, Taylor turned towards Ryan mentally preparing herself for what she would see. Icy blue eyes collided with her own hazel pair. The gaze lasted only a few seconds but communicated a thousand different emotions.

_Sadness, shame and pain_

He watched as her eyes took in the bruises, bleeds and cuts he'd acquired from that night of cage-fighting. The relief in her eyes was almost inconspicuous but he'd learnt awhile ago how to read her. He knew she was grateful he looked better than he had on previous nights. What she didn't know was that she was the reason why. He was tired of seeing her trying to mask the pain it cased her to see him hurt. He could avoid the Cohens and Summer, telling himself that they'd get over the pain they felt because he was no good for them but he couldn't do the same for Taylor. She reminded him that he was alive. _He needed her._ And that scared him. He had never needed someone before. He hated the pain he made her feel whenever she saw his injuries but he didn't think he could stop, at least not yet.

So instead he fought harder than he ever thought he could so that the fight would be over sooner and he'd come out with less damage.

He watched as she took a sip of her coffee and sighed happily at the taste of the hot beverage. He loved how she took her coffee straight – it was so contradictory to her sweet and frothy personality and yet it wasn't. She could be bubbly and vulnerable but she could also be strong and tough. The paradox that was her was part of the reason he kept coming back.

Taylor placed the Starsbucks cup back into the cup holder of the car before reaching out to the backseat and the awaiting melting ice pack. Using one hand to place the pack on the right side of Ryan's face, she unconsciously placed the other in his sandy blonde hair, giving comfort through the soft and gentle strokes, whilst simultaneously drawing comfort from the touch.

She smiled softly when he winced at the contact of the cool packet with his skin.

"Don't be such a baby, Ry!"

The sound of her laughter was infectious and it warmed his heart, as well as the nickname that was reserved for her use only. He quirked an eyebrow at her.

"Did you just call me a baby? Because I'm a man Taylor."

"I'm sure you are."

Her sarcastic response earned her a playful shove from him. The movement caused the ice pack to fall to floor of the car. Sighing, Taylor moved to remove her hand from Ryan's hair; but his left hand grabbed her arm before she could complete the action. She stared into his eyes questioning his intent.

"Don't."

She nodded her compliance and wasn't surprised when his other arm reached over to pull her by the waist on top of him. After all it had been their routine for almost four weeks now; meeting in the secluded section of parking lot by the beach around 1 am, sometimes talking, others times just sitting in silence and listening to the radio or the background noise of the surf hitting the sand and falling asleep in the car or in her apartment if they made it that far.

_When they were together, their insomnia didn't seem to exist._

What did surprise her was the kiss. It was everything she had imagined it to be; tender, passionate, sweet and just everything. It was unexplainable and incomprehensible – it was them.

_Ryan + Taylor_

When they pulled apart for air, Ryan's eyes stared at her patiently waiting for a response.

"That was good…I mean not good. Better than good…it was sort of wow…"

Sensing Taylor's descent into full rambling mode, Ryan pushed a lock of her auburn hair out of her eyes and smiled at her - his second genuine one of the night. His first like this one, produced in response to her. His actions silenced her and he felt his smile grow. He loved the effect he had on her. He liked how his touch seemed to anchor her. She could be floating and rambling like she was going for a world record and one simple touch from him would whisk away all her doubts and worries. Her touch had the same affect on him; her touch was his retreat from the memories and sounds of two cars colliding, the lifeless look in Mar…her eyes and the smell of gas burning.

Returning his smile, she kissed him once more before laying her head on his chest.

When this had first begun almost a month ago, they had both tried to question why and the best he could come up with were the lyrics of an old seventies song. He'd tried to come up with something better because the song contained the "L" word. He hadn't been able to acknowledge what he felt to himself then and he still wasn't able to express the words out loud, despite the truthfulness of them.

Feeling his tiredness finally translate into sleep, Ryan pressed the button to erect the roof of the car and let the lyrics of the song run through his head.

Your love is like a laser burning right into my life  
You knowing my weaknesses you cut me like a knife  
You're separating all the wrong things from the right

It's like a laser laser love

Your love is like an x-ray there is nothing I can hide  
You hold me to the light you see what is inside  
It's all so clear when it's there in black and white

Just like a laser laser love

Now and then I think about my life  
Think about the way that it used to be  
I was just a lonely boy standing in the cold until you sheltered me  
Trying to find a way that I could do everything I want  
And somehow still be free  
Then you came along and told me how it really had to be

It's a laser love  
It's a laser love  
Just like a laser laser  
Just like a laser laser love

Your love is like an optical illusion in a book  
There's more than one way you can see it when you took  
And when I saw it the world around me shook

Like a laser laser love

Your love is like a laser burning right into my life  
You know my weakness you cut me like a knife  
You're separating all the wrong things from the right

It's like a laser laser  
It's like a laser laser  
It's like a laser laser love

_So what did you think? Please Read & Review._


	2. Burning Right Into My Life

_A/N: I hope everyone who is reading or reviewing (or possibly both) enjoys this instalment, I'm not completely satisfied with it but i achieved my aim of the chapter. Its not beta'd so any mistakes made are solely my fault. I'm British so some words may be spelt according to standard British English. I'm feeling pretty proud of myself for resisting the temptation to write "mobile phone" down instead of "cell phone". Thank you very much for all the kind reviews. Sorry if i didn't reply personally to them. Its been a hectic few days._

_Song is not mine. Will you still love me tomorrow – Amy Winehouse_

_Enjoy and please review._

_Debs_

**B****urning Right Into My Life**

Two months and two weeks later, Taylor Townsend sat in the driver's seat of her Mustang in her usual parking space in the lesser used parking lot by the beach waiting for her currently late boyfriend as she cradled a cup of half empty coffee.

_Boyfriend!_

She found it funny how one word could encompass all and everything she felt for Ryan. She liked how the word rolled off her tongue so easily and how he was the first guy who really personified everything and more she had always felt the word should.

She still couldn't believe that a chance encounter in a 7-Eleven had led to tangled yet beautiful web that was their relationship.

_RT_

_Taylor cursed loudly to herself as her bare feet connected with the cool air conditioned floor of the 7-Eleven and again marvelled at her thus far unrivalled streak of bad luck. _

_First, her dreamed beautiful Parisian life had ended up in her almost marrying an unhygienic French man because he'd paid her some honest attention and saved her a whooping __5 on a subway ticket, she was currently living in shoebox of an apartment because she didn't want to have to admit to her bitch of a mother that she had once again ruined her life and now, to top it all off her beloved candy red car had broken down on her at 1 am, meaning that the AA were refusing to answer her calls and she was stranded till around 8am the next morning._

_She was only glad that the old man behind the counter of the store hadn't kicked her out yet for loitering and that no self-respecting 'Newpsie' would ever step foot inside a place of this calibre._

_In her book, her dire situation merited some serious bonding time with a packet of Oreos and Ben & Jerry's new formula cookie dough. Ignoring the ever present voice of Veronica Townsend in her mind telling her ass was fat enough as it was; Taylor followed the buzzing sound to the freezer section of the store._

"_Taylor?!"_

_She was just balancing on the tippy-tip of her toes trying to reach her chosen flavour of ice-cream, when the sound of her name threw her off balance, causing her smack the side of her face into the freezer door and several tubs of Ben & Jerry's collapse to floor around her shoeless feet._

"_Ouch!" _

_Blinking back tears of pain, Taylor was surprised to be confronted with the bruised, bloodied and battered face of Ryan Attwood. She'd received emails from both Seth and Summer (mostly Seth, as Summer's emails tended to consist of only a few lines) detailing Ryan's descent into depression and violence since Marissa's death but seeing it for herself was a lot different from reading about via her AOL account. It made it real._

"_What are you doing here?" He questioned as he placed a tub of chubby hubby in her left hand and motioned for her to place it on her throbbing cheek. He gave her a cursory once over and reeled back in surprise as he took in her blue nail-varnished toes. "And barefoot?" _

_His blue eyes collided with her embarrassed gaze. The intensity of the gaze surprised her and seemed to communicate a million different feelings and words. The buzzer signifying the arrival of another late night consumer ended the gaze and the air around the two teenagers filled with the awkward aftermath of the connection._

_In that single moment Ryan had felt see-through. His walls had been penetrated and it scared him but at the same time strangely comforted him. Not only that but in that moment he felt as if he could see-through Taylor too and what he saw was all too familiar to him. He could see part of himself and his insecurities in her._

_Nervously, Taylor jumped at the opportunity to fill the silence. "If you mean here just outside Newport, I boarded a plane from Paris, France. If you mean here in the store, my car broke down and I wanted supplies."_

_Ryan quirked an eyebrow at her in amusement. "Ice cream and Oreos? Is your car hungry?"_

_Taylor giggled. Not because Ryan's joke was particularly amusing, but because the pleasant surprise she saw in his eyes and Seth's comments in his emails indicated that it had been a while since he'd found anything funny._

"_No silly. The supplies are for me. The AA doesn't seem that eager to answer my calls at this time, so I'm buying some stuff to tide me over till I can get it fixed. What about you? Why are in here?"_

_Ryan froze. He didn't particularly want to have to explain that he was here to buy a six pack of alcohol because drinking himself into oblivion was the only way he could get some sleep these days. But he also didn't want to have to lie to her face. She wouldn't believe whatever lame ass excuse he would come up with anyway. He'd never been a good liar. Seth took every opportunity he could to remind him._

_At least when he could track him down._

_Taylor seemed to understand his hesitancy and gracefully changed the subject. Removing her substitute for an ice pack away from her face, she smiled up at him brightly._

"_So doc, any permanent damage?"_

"_Nope but it looks like you gonna have a small bruise." Ryan winced as he said it. His sympathetic expression quickly turned to confusion as his mind contemplated Taylor's cheery reply._

"_Good!"_

_He watched as she adjusted her denim shorts and automatically extended his arm out as she began an attempt to rise. He ignored the warm feeling that gripped him as she rewarded his gesture with another wide smile._

"_How is that a good thing?"_

"_Well, if your face is anything to go by, then it looks like the Chino look is back in fashion and you __**know **__how much I hate being unfashionable."_

_A couple of seconds of silence stretched between them and Taylor began to wonder if she had been too blunt, when suddenly the air was filled with Ryan's surprised bark of laughter._

"_Gimme your car keys. Maybe I can fix whatever's wrong with your car. What kind of car is it?"_

_Taylor shrugged at his question. "It's just red." _

_Shaking his head at Taylor's paper-thin description of her car, Ryan left the coolness of the store in search of her vehicle._

_Ten minutes later, Taylor joined him beside the hood of her car, her hands laden with two plastic bags of "supplies" and her feet adorned by a pair of blue plastic flip flops._

"_Did you mange to fix it?"_

"_I fixed __**her **__alright. Taylor, this is a __'65 Ford Mustang. It has __289 V-8, 4-SPEED and the original engine in pristine condition. It even has the rare bench seat! She's not just a __**red **__car!" _

_Realizing he was getting worked up, Ryan trailed off, as Taylor took in his embarrassed expression with amusement._

"_I would give you a hug but it doesn't seem like you're very comfortable with stuff like that...not that I mean you're not affectionate because I'm sure you are...and I so don't have the energy to ramble at the moment so, how about we settle for a bag of ice for your face, Oreos and ice cream and ride home in my candy red baby? You can even finish lecturing me on my undesirable description of my motor vehicle. But I totally understand if you don't want to...you probably have something better to do than hang out with a rambling, ex-high school classmate... _

"_Taylor, I'll come."_

_Unknown to her, tonight he'd felt more alive than he had in weeks and it felt good. Although he didn't understand what it was about Taylor that made him want to actually live instead of just surviving but he wasn't eager to let her or the feeling go. The pleased smile his decision had produced on her face only further confirmed his decision._

_Climbing into the passenger seat, he watched with mild fascination as Taylor went through the motions of adjusting her seat, rear-view mirror, side mirrors and seatbelt before starting the car. As Taylor pulled away from the curb, a sudden forgotten thought fought its way back into his consciousness._

"_So are you ever going to tell me why you weren't wearing any shoes?"_

_RT_

It was nearing two am and Ryan still hadn't made an entrance. He was never usually this late and Taylor was beginning to worry. At least twenty scenarios ranging from Ryan being seduced by a busty blonde to the Atwood-Cohen in question lying in ditch somewhere had flashed through the newly black haired beauty's mind, before she pulled her car out of park and began to make her way to her boyfriend's work establishment.

As she cruised down the streets to the warehouse where the closest place to the Fight Club she knew was located, the chirp of her cell phone caught her attention.

Assuming it was Ryan with a sheepish apology, Taylor answered without checking the caller I.D.

"Ryan, where are you? This better be a long, grovelling type of apology because I've been…"

"Miss Townsend?"

The formal use of her name and the obviously female tone cut Taylor's annoyance inspired ramble off and replaced annoyance with anxiety. Only Ryan, her employer and her psychic knew her new cell phone number; she been too scared to give her new number to her therapist knowing that she'd convince her to confront her mother and tell her that her dependence on Ryan was unhealthy.

An unfamiliar voice could only mean something was wrong.

"Yes, this is she." The words were delivered slowly and precisely - a stark contrast to her usual speech delivery.

"I'm calling from Newport Memorial regarding Ryan Atwood. You're listed as his next of kin. He sustained a concussion, two fractured ribs and a broken arm from his wrestling."

"Is he okay?"

"He's going to be just fine but he's going to need stay for overnight observation. You're going to have to sign some paper work and the young man who brought him in, Liam, is also asking for you."

The rest of the phone conversation was a blur and Taylor could barely remember u-turning and reaching the hospital.

At the entrance to Ryan's room, Taylor had met Liam, the club's bartender and listened impatiently as he explained the events that had led them to Newport Memorial.

"_He came into the club upset…vodka and cokes…itching to fight…normally he takes part in one or two…by the sixth…tough of opponents" _

She couldn't remember everything he had told her but the brown envelope he'd hesitated to give her told her enough. The amount of money contained within it was ridiculous; it was at least a weeks pay and Ryan had grossed it all in a single night.

_Not only was it evidence of the night's events but it was proof of her failure._

She stood in the doorway of his room, debating whether to go in or call the Cohen's. She felt in over her head. She had tried so hard to hide it but her anxiety was beginning to catch up with her. She had thought he was getting better and that just maybe she could deal with everything and help him. Just like he'd been helping her, unknowingly most of the time, get past her issues. But now…she wasn't so sure.

She had wanted it to be his own decision to go back to his family, she still did but maybe she should have pushed harder. If she had, they probably wouldn't be here. But she hadn't because she knew that he would always feel inadequate if he was pushed back into the situation. That he had nothing to offer to the dynamics of the Cohen clan. But it was so untrue. He gave Sandy a reason to go to work in the morning and a sense of achievement, he had saved Seth from a depressing and self-hatred filled life and given Kirsten a sense of self-fulfilment.

That and she hadn't wanted to betray his trust in her.

Any thoughts of informing the Cohen's of Ryan's whereabouts were silenced as she became of aware that he'd seen her. Their eyes locked and she'd never loved the blue of his eyes anymore than she ever had at that moment.

She approached the bed and felt his arms tighten around her as she settled down beside him and waited. Waited for a reason or an apology, _anything_.

He didn't make her wait for long.

"Volchock's dead. Suicide."

Their eyes met and everything they wanted to express was communicated in that single look. His rage, grief, disappointment, his lack of purpose and finally his acceptance. Her surprise, sympathy and relief.

Finally, she was hit by the heaviness of crushing realization. There was no need for their current system anymore. Ryan could return home free of his demons and he would be no longer broken and wouldn't need her. They would end because a fixed Ryan would no longer want her and they'd no longer fit. Someone who was fixed wouldn't want someone who was issue-ridden like her and they certainly couldn't love her. The puzzle wouldn't fit anymore. It was just a matter of time before he realized it too. She voiced her epiphany out loud hoping it would alleviate some of her panic.

"We can't keep on like this Ryan."

It didn't.

And for the first time in months, Taylor found it difficult to find sleep. Even with Ryan right beside her.

Tonight you're mine completely  
You give your love so sweetly  
Tonight the light of love is in your eyes  
Will you love me tomorrow?

Is this a lasting treasure  
Or just a moment's pleasure?  
Can I believe the magic of your sighs?  
Will you still love me tomorrow?

Tonight with words unspoken  
And you say that I'm the only one, the only one, yeah  
But will my heart be broken  
When the night meets the morning star?

I'd like to know that your love  
Is love I can be sure of  
So tell me now, cause I won't ask again  
Will you still love me tomorrow?

_Yay or Nay? Criticism welcome._

_I was not planning on incorporating how Taylor & Ryan began thier relationship but __Avecia__ review got me thinking more in-depth about their backstory. I thought you were deserving of at least part of their first meeting, whether i'll incorporate anymore is still murky._


	3. You Cut Me Like a Knife

**Y****ou cut me like a knife**

Ryan sat cross-legged at the edge of the pool, clutching a mug of coffee in his hands as he stared at his reflection coupled with the reflection of the night sky in the clear water, lost in his thoughts. It was 3:30 am and the Cohen family slept unaware that the fourth member of their unit couldn't succumb to tiredness and sleep.

He'd awoken a short while ago, with the burning feeling that something was missing. The sensation of emptiness had been lingering underneath the surface but the euphoria he had felt at being reunited with his adoptive family had made the feeling inconspicuous and as result, forgotten for the past two weeks.

Now that the jubilation had finally died down, he could clearly see the missing part.

Taylor.

She wasn't missing in the physical sense. He would have noticed the lack of her presence straight away. In truth, he had spent far less time with her than he had when it was just the two of them and the tightly placed walls of her cosy apartment but he knew she didn't feel neglected.

Most of his time lately had been spent avoiding the conversation with Sandy about his future prospects, reassuring Kirsten that when he said he was going to the store, that in actual fact, he _**was**_ going to the store and not Newport Bus Station and ignoring demands from Summer to know every detail of his and Taylor's life in last few months. If that wasn't enough, any time not spent on those tasks, was spent with Seth trying to fulfil his overdue seven-month quota of "Seth/Ryan Time".

Taylor would come over when she wasn't working or occupied with her iPod and her notepad and sit in on his movie nights or x-box gaming marathons with Seth. She had always seemed perfectly content, if not strangely silent. In his euphoria, he'd misinterpreted it as allowing Seth to fully enjoy his return but in hindsight he could clearly see it as Taylor's way of distancing herself without having to avoid him.

In the past few days, there had been moments when Ryan had caught his girlfriend watching him when she thought he wasn't looking. It had felt like she was trying to drink him all in, and memorise every feature. It had left him with an eerie feeling, which he had dismissed as paranoia.

It was the kiss, however, that she'd given him the day he'd returned home that now terrified him.

*

_They sat on the hood of her car staring up at the Cohen home; taking in Kirsten's decorating expertise calming their nerves. Well, he was calming his nerves, while Taylor gazed ahead waiting for his heart rate to normalise itself._

_A small part of him had always known that he'd return home to his family but he'd always visualised his return in the back of a cop car or Sandy finally tracking him down & forcing his hand with cleverly placed words and pleading eyes. He'd never for a second thought that he would just wake up with the resolve to go home. His stubborn and prideful nature had seemingly disappeared and had played no part in his decision-making._

_When he had told Taylor "I think I need to go home." she hadn't even blinked. She had just said "Okay" and had proceeded to show him a holdall of his belongings already packed. "When do you want to go?"_

_Taylor never ceased to surprise him. She knew him so well. She knew his next move before he'd even begun to consider the possibility of making a next move. Despite how unlikely their match seemed on paper, he couldn't imagine his world without her._

_She squeezed his hand, bringing him out of his thoughts._

_You ready?"_

_Smiling softly at her, he nodded his reply and watched as she walked towards the front door._

_Suddenly, she stopped and threw herself at him at blinding speed. He caught her with his good hand (his other one still in a wrist cast) and looked at her with questioning eyes. Ignoring his look, she proceeded to kiss him with such passion and fervour that fire would appear tame beside it._

_Eventually, they pulled apart, both filling their lungs with much needed air. With his right arm still around her waist securing her to him, his left casted hand reached to push her black-dyed hair out of her face_

"_Hey, what was that for?" He asked his blue eyes frantically searching hers._

"_Nothing." She answered smiling._

"_Maybe I should do nothing more often then." His lame joke was rewarded with Taylor rolling her eyes at him._

_*_

Now he realised what it was. It hadn't been a spontaneous kiss or even a reassuring kiss.

_**It was a goodbye kiss.**_

He wasn't planning on going anywhere, especially not without her. She needed to realise that he'd always need her and he wasn't going to leave her just because he was no longer as self-destructive he had been since the events of May.

He groaned internally, annoyed that he hadn't noticed it earlier. His late comprehension of the situation meant that Taylor's imagination and insecurities had time to speculate and grow.

He resolved to confront her tomorrow. He couldn't function properly without her.

Realizing that sleep wasn't going to come without Taylor's presence, Ryan made his way to the kitchen to further acquaint himself with the coffee machine.

******

(Slight change of perspective here – I'm going to focus on **Seth's** view of events.)

Seth Cohen made his way to his kitchen, unusually eager to start the day. Ryan was finally back home and he had missed his brother and only real friend extremely. He paused on the stairs contemplating his adoptive brother.

Seven months away from the Cohen clan had changed his brother. He was still fundamentally Ryan. Brooding, sarcastic and still lacking "Seth Cohen" type communicative skills but there were new aspects to him; a maturity that hadn't been there before and the dark cloud that had always hung over his head had completely disappeared.

Most of the time, his brother's new found characteristics went unnoticed but in Taylor Townsend's presence (he still couldn't wrap his head around the concept of his brother dating the former prep monster. He also couldn't believe the changes in Taylor's appearance either. Her signature sunshine colour palette clothing had now been replaced with more subdued colours, according to Summer, "to match her new hair colour".)

When Taylor was around, the mood around Ryan seemed to miraculously lift and he became imbued with newfound energy. The "post- Taylor Ryan" as he'd come to refer to it as, was, shock horror gasp, _**funny **_and talkative. Okay, not talkative by normal standards but definitely by Atwood standards.

He knew his mum was worried by the intensity of Taylor and Ryan's relationship. Seth couldn't really blame his mum for her worries, when Ryan & Taylor exchanged a simple look, everyone in the room felt as if they were intruding on an exceedingly private moment.

Despite his inability to understand their relationship, it was clear to Seth that Taylor made Ryan happy. And in his opinion, that was all that really counted.

Awakening from his reverie, Seth bounced down the remainder of the staircase and strolled into the kitchen to find Ryan already seated at the breakfast bar looking bored but completely awake watching his father scrimmage around for a bagel.

"Hey Ryan. You're awake!"

"Yeah, couldn't really sleep last night." Ryan replied momentarily settling his gaze on him before focusing on his toast and coffee.

"Imagine my shock when I realized he was up before I was ready for my morning surf." His father proclaimed enthusiastically as he buttered his bagel. "So son, what's the plan for today?"

"Summer & Taylor are dropping by this morning. Well probably end up at the Mall or Arcade. Then some Seth/Ryan time with Halo 3 in the afternoon."

"Actually Seth, I think I need to spend some time with Taylor today. She's been acting weirdly lately."

Seth chuckled slightly. "Its Taylor man. Doesn't she have some monthly quota of weird to fulfil?"

Seth's laughter died in his throat as he took in his brother's venomous look at his comment about his girlfriend. Surprised, Seth turned looking for a distraction from the nosedive the conversation had taken.

Luckily for him, his mother entered the kitchen at that moment with Summer at her heels.

"Morning boys and Mr Cohen." Summer chirped before snagging a piece of toast from his plate.

"Morning Summer, Gorgeous." His father sang back as he winked suggestively at his wife.

"Eww guys. I could have sworn we had a discussion on the approved actions of PDA. Winking was not included on the list. I'm certain of that because like Santa, I check my list twice. And that was definitely naughty and not nice."

"Cohen, shut up." Summer said as she smacked him on the back of his head.

Wincing, Seth rose to refill his glass of orange juice, muttering under his breath about abusive, pixie like girlfriends. He vaguely registered the sound of the front door closing and Taylor's greetings.

Before he could fully acknowledge her presence, a blur shot across the room coming to a stop a few feet away from a grey skinny jeaned Taylor. Blinking, Seth realized that the blur was Ryan.

Everyone's attention was now focused on the duo, openly and unashamedly staring.

Taylor and Ryan's eyes locked; a silent, non-verbal conversation taking place. Ryan was the first to speak, his voice seeming loud and harsh in the noise-free kitchen.

"You've been avoiding me."" Their audience exchanged looks of confusion. Taylor had been at the house almost everyday for the past week. What was he talking about?

Taylor's brown eyes registered shock.

"You noticed."

Ryan sighed in exasperation, as he ran a hand through his hair.

"Of course I did babes!" Seth's eyes widened at Ryan's use of the affectionate nickname. Ryan wasn't known for his use of nicknames, at least those that weren't derogatory. "I notice everything about you. I'm sorry I took so long though. I've just been so caught up in everything." Ryan said gesturing behind him to his family and Summer.

He watched entranced as Ryan's blue eyes connected once again with Taylor's resuming their non-verbal conversation.

Taylor nodded slowly. "Okay, I promise."

"Good. I can't function without you." Although, he may not have been able to follow the conversation, Ryan's last sentence spoke volumes. Summer's and his mum's jaws had practically unhinged at his comment.

"I know. I love you too."

At her words, the tension in his brother's shoulder's dissolved like sugar in tea, while Summer "awW"'d softly at the scene.

Even his father stood riveted as Ryan extended his hand towards Taylor in a handshake gesture.

"No more goodbyes?"

Taylor smiled as she grasped Ryan's hand.

"No more goodbyes."

Ryan pulled Taylor into a brief hug before disappearing out the French doors of patio into his pool house. Taylor smiled softly at the remaining occupants of the kitchen as she placed a Starbuck's bag on the counter.

"I brought muffins." At her childish proclamation, the awkwardness of being caught blatantly eavesdropping and staring was forgotten, as Sandy dived for the bag sheepishly.

"Ooh blueberry!"

Conversation resumed as everyone chewed happily on their respective muffins. Eventually, Ryan rejoined the group in the kitchen, taking his place beside his girlfriend.

"Tay did you…" Before, Ryan could complete his sentence; Taylor shoved an envelope into his hands, all without pausing in her conversation with Summer about Luella's latest spring/summer collection.

Seth exchanged looks with his father, both mouthed "Creepy" in unison.

"oh hey, I almost forgot. I got your mail on the way in." Summer handed the letters to Kirsten.

"Bills, bills, bills, gym membership…Ryan, you have a letter!"

All eyes fell on Ryan as he read his letter.

"My mum's pregnant."


End file.
